SEVERAL coach drivers have been illegally ferrying pupils to and from schools after a spot-check found they did not have a proper licence.

And the Bury Times can reveal that the drivers' employers, the companies contracted to carry out the school runs, escaped prosecution and continue to be employed by the council.

Around ten drivers are believed to have been found carrying child passengers without having a Public Service Vehicle (PSV) licence.

And although the council discovered the breach, none of the companies involved had its contract issued in September withdrawn.

The news has outraged Mr Paul Dart, who owns the Tottington-based mini-coach firm, Freebird.

He said: "I find it extremely worrying that 20 per cent of the mini-bus contracts in Bury were given to drivers lacking the required licence, which obviously rendered their insurance invalid.

"I am appalled that I have had to make two full-time drivers redundant and put others on short time because contracts are being fulfilled at cheaper rates by companies.

Mr Dart only found out about the scandal when a council officer contacted him earlier this month to see if he could do a job in place of one of the unlicensed drivers. He said: "They found out last month about these drivers through checks and have made sure that they are no longer transporting children to school. But I cannot understand why the council then continues to use the same operators who, after all, have ultimate responsibility for the drivers they employ."

Head of financial services for Bury, Sharon Vernon, who ordered the examination of drivers' licenses, has told Mr Dart she is satisfied there has been no "deliberate" disregard of legislation.

An unimpressed Mr Dart said: "In effect what she is saying is it's okay to break the law as long as you don't do it deliberately. Presumably operators who claimed they were unaware of using unlicensed drivers and that having no insurance was illegal are abrogated of all responsibility!

"The information should have been passed on to the police and the traffic commissioner. It is up to them to decide the culpability of the perpetrators." He added: "Do operators who blatantly disregard the law in order to work at the lowest price come up to Bury Council standards? By the council's own admission, at best the operators concerned don't know what they are doing. At worst they don't care."

A Bury Council spokesman said: "The contracts in question were awarded in September last year at which time there appeared to be no problem in relation to drivers and their having PSV licences.

"However, as a result of a spot check carried out by the council at a local school, a problem was identified with a driver not having the relevant licence.

"Immediate action was taken on this information and this included re-checking all the licences of all drivers concerned. As a result a small number of drivers were removed from the contract.

"We are looking further into this entire episode and additional procedures are being put in place to prevent a problem of this kind arising in the future."